Archive by Author

Sports discourse in the aftermath of Junior Seau’s suicide

13 Jan

Screen shot 2013-01-13 at 6.32.33 PMI remember the anguish that punctured my thoughts when Junior Seau, a star in his own right on the gridiron, placed a handgun to his chest and took his own life eight months ago at his California home. Sitting in my room, I sunk into my chair and spoke no words for more than an hour while giving all I could to refrain from shedding any tears. His death struck me in an unforgettable way that positioned myself, once again, at a crossroads with football and its place in our culture infatuated with the image of the modern-day gladiator.

On May 3, 2012, the day after Seau’s suicide, I scrambled for answers with the shadows of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) looking over my back. I ran a number of searches in Google’s archives for newspaper articles from the 1990s to find some sort of explanation for his actions, but rarely was Seau’s name mentioned directly in relation to a head injury. Although my efforts were rather premature and assuming, there had to be some sort of correlation between Seau’s noted altercations behind closed doors with the thousands of hits his brain endured over the course of a 19-year professional career.

There are, of course, many different storylines that people turn to to explain something so tragic immediately after its occurrence, but confirmation of my original hypothesis (shared by many, I’m sure) by the National Institute of Health several days ago left me in an inexplicable state of unsettled anxiety. Though I inferred Seau would be diagnosed postmortem with CTE, my response to the official announcement was still along the lines of, “Unbelievable.” Continue reading →

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Alzheimer’s study may help answer questions about CTE

9 Feb

In response to an article published by the New York Times, the Sports Legacy Institute shared these words (on Twitter): “Mystery solved? Key Alzheimer’s study may have unlocked mystery of how CTE progresses.”  What’s being referenced is the release of information discovered by researchers at Harvard and Columbia, who found that Alzheimer’s disease spreads like an infection—not the spreading of virus or bacteria, but the spread of tau protein.

The involvement of tau protein has long been known to be a part of the process in this disease, but in understanding the ways in which such proteins expand over a period of time within the brain offers a variety of potentialities for neuroscience’s future.  The study was done with genetically engineered mice that could create abnormal tau protein, and over a two-year period, the neuronal makeup of the mice displayed a path of destruction headed by tau protein through networks of the brain.  What was most important to take from this study was the fat that the tau protein functioned through cell-to-cell transmission.

The new studies provide an answer. And they indicate it may be possible to bring Alzheimer’s disease to an abrupt halt early on by preventing cell-to-cell transmission, perhaps with an antibody that blocks tau.

This process has been heavily debated in the scientific community in recent decades, where there was no clear definition to the ways in which Alzheimer’s disease progressed.  Scientists did not agree on whether this process was because of cell-to-cell transmission involving tau protein, or it was because the protein found avenues of invasion through the inadvertent assistance of vulnerable neurons.  The unanswerable mystery of Alzheimer’s disease now seems to have found its answer, with regards to this particular question and finding.  It is now plausible to conceive a method in which the process of this neurodegenerative process could be sidetracked and treated with positive result. Continue reading →

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Head Games: Dustin Fink’s influence on contact sports

8 Feb

(Hi everyone! Again, I have fallen into a blogging hiatus, which I apologize for and wish I had more time to contribute to “The Concussion Blog.”  I’m currently working as an intern for the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Athletics in the Office of Media Relations covering Pitt’s baseball program throughout the season.  This has taken away a lot of my time with regards to writing, but I still vocalize my opinions on the concussion topic on Twitter often.

This post actually stems from an assignment I was given in my Intro to Journalism & Nonfiction course at Pitt, where I was to interview an individual and write a profile piece on them.  I immediately thought of Dustin Fink, the site’s founder, when briefed on this project, and focused heavily on the conception of “The Concussion Blog.”  I hope you enjoy it.)

Head Games: Dustin Fink’s influence on contact sports

“What people fail to understand is that a concussion is a brain injury, and we are now finding out that it has lasting effects.  This could easily be resolved or even avoided if proper knowledge and management is applied.  Heck, when someone tears an ACL, it’s devastating, yet there is a common understanding of the injury and the recovery process.  I believe that if we were to just get on the same page with information and management, we would be one step closer to resolving the concussion crisis.”

As a certified athletic trainer, Dustin Fink regularly witnesses the concussion injury in high school athletics.  When he returns home from work, Fink spends the rest of the day running The Concussion Blog—an online resource for information on sports-related concussions and an outlet for athletes to have a voice in the matter at hand.  The site’s goal is to raise awareness of the injury’s entailments and to encourage all educational efforts regarding concussions in contact sports.

“The blog was developed because of my personal experience with concussions—my injuries and the concussions I see in my job,” Fink explains.  “I felt that there was a lack of understanding.  The message was clear but inconsistent from one person to the next, especially within the media and medical community.” Continue reading →

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Pronger out for season with concussion, but Crosby still considered the ‘pussy’

16 Dec

Former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell was once quoted in describing what he termed to be the “wussification of America.”  If we look at this “wussification” in the spectrum of hockey’s concussion debate within the keystone state (the commonwealth of Pennsylvania), may we draw conclusions on differences between the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins?  This is, of course, a heated in-state rivalry, and both teams understand the effects that concussions can have on even the brightest of players.  In the past, the Flyers have seen the woes of the likes of Eric Lindros and Keith Primeau.  The Penguins have seen their young star in Sidney Crosby miss much of last season on top of additional games missed this season.

Yesterday, ESPN published a report stating that one of the Flyers’ best players, Chris Pronger, would be out for the remainder of the season due to post-concussion syndrome.  Pronger has not seen the ice since November 19th.

And for quite some time now we have all heard the news of Sidney Crosby’s recurring symptoms.  His career now may be in question.

But with regards to this “wussification,” as we may bend its direction toward the hockey organizations in Pennsylvania, there are some clear polarities between both fan bases between the Flyers and Penguins.  This is coming from the observations of an outside-observing indifferent viewer of the sport who is from Philadelphia and attends college in Pittsburgh—me. Continue reading →

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Who signed up for this?

3 Dec

The widespread understanding of the concussion injury can be defined as scattered, for many may adhere to the simplest definitions of the neurological phenomenon while others may delve more thoroughly into all that the event entails.  There are those who would rather set aside definition and reject any potential complications as something that may interfere with their daily objectives, and there are those who care to recognize the injury as a neurometabolic cascade of chemical imbalance—an attempt by the brain to self-repair after the moment of cell damage in order to restore a more stable sense of homeostasis.  I’m not sure how we can exactly describe the state of the sports environment as it relates to the understanding or attempt to understand the concussion injury, but I do believe that there is a message that needs to be sent and it needs to be sent loud and clear.  Yes, there are questions to be raised regarding the specificity and legitimacy of claims being placed upon terms such as post-concussion syndrome, second-impact syndrome, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, but that does not mean there is an absence of truth in these trauma-related conditions.  Many of us can understand athletes’ points of view regarding this matter, for you can’t go out on the field and perform with fear haunting your thoughts and be quite as effective, but we all need to be better educated on what a concussion really is.  By this, I am not talking about a neuroscientific breakdown of the processes that develop during the brain’s recovery.  I am talking about listening to the people who have felt the debilitating and, often times, life-altering effects of the concussion injury.  I am talking about allowing those who have been impaired or have had even the slightest of alterations in cognitive ability to have a platform on which they can project their voices—their stories.

Efforts toward a more agreed upon and stable set of terms regarding concussion management protocol are by no means an attempt to overanalyze the injury itself.  These efforts are not, in my opinion, indicative of overanalyzed nature because the risks are essentially laid out for us in the examples of real people struggling with real lives who have been in the shoes of the athletes who are complaining about what’s going on in professional, collegiate, and high school and youth sports.  I cannot find any reason to reject such protocol because of the reality of the injury—meaning its capacity to act as a temporarily parasitic collection of damaged cells, where all it would take is one hit to end one’s season, one’s career, or one’s life.  Even with that in mind, there is enough accessible information out there that can interest us in understanding the cumulative effects of the concussion injury, where the compilation of multiple traumatic events could come to haunt one’s life beyond the game in which they play.  Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and in fact, I have many of my own that aren’t necessarily considered as approving of certain decisions made regarding this subject, but it is hard to sound reasonable in any manner when one is openly criticizing the concussion injury as an insignificant event that athletes might as well have ‘signed up for anyway.’ Continue reading →

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Griffin Takes a Scary Hit: What Happened to Tackling?

29 Nov

In this week’s college football match-up between Baylor and Texas Tech, Heisman hopeful Robert Griffin III (Baylor’s quarterback), took a scary blow to the head from a Red Raider defensive player after making an attempt to give himself up on a slide.  Following the immediate impact from the hit, Griffin’s body froze and continue to slide while remaining flat and motionless for several seconds, before coming ‘to’ and removing his helmet after sustaining a concussion.

This incident tells us a lot about the state of the game of football, even so at the college level.  For one, there is a display of pure athleticism on Griffin’s part to move elusively throughout the pocket and toward the first-down marker in an attempt to maintain momentum on his team’s offensive drive.  In addition to that, on a more so darker note, we see the crumbling technique of the tackle—something that I have and will continue to be quite critical of. Continue reading →

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2011 NCAA Football Reported-Concussion Study: Week 11

15 Nov

The Concussion Blog Original, 2011 NCAA Football Reported-Concussion Study, is a weekly compilation of reported head injuries in Division-I college football.  Concussions are added to the list each week from multiple sources to give you, the reader, a picture of what is happening on the field.  Each week we will bring you the information along with relevant statistics.  This study recognizes that the NCAA has no mandated requirements in reporting injuries, but hopes to shed light on an issue that hasn’t received the kind of critical recognition to that of the National Football League’s.  We encourage reader involvement in contributing to this comprehensive online study.  We will be using Fink’s rule to classify a concussion/head injury.

As we all very well know, college athletics are a beloved element in our national sports culture- controversy aside.  With understanding this country-wide phenomena in the adoration of college football, specifically, we recognize this love, and sit back in our own respective comfort zones of viewing games with our friends and families cheering on our favorite programs and alma mater institutions.  College football is a significant part of our exposure to sports, but for the sake of specificity as it relates to the regards of our blog, college football has not necessarily been given much attention in consideration of the sports concussion crisis.  The purpose of this study is largely to bring forth such attention, and to generate critical questions of the standards in place as football as a whole, without secluding the focus to only that of the professional levels.  This is a hard task, mainly because of the abundance of programs at the Division-I level, but also due to the fact that the NCAA has no requirements placed on coaching staffs to report injuries sustained by players during play. Continue reading →

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2011 NCAA Football Reported-Concussion Study: Week 10

10 Nov

The Concussion Blog Original, 2011 NCAA Football Reported-Concussion Study, is a weekly compilation of reported head injuries in Division-I college football.  Concussions are added to the list each week from multiple sources to give you, the reader, a picture of what is happening on the field.  Each week we will bring you the information along with relevant statistics.  This study recognizes that the NCAA has no mandated requirements in reporting injuries, but hopes to shed light on an issue that hasn’t received the kind of critical recognition to that of the National Football League’s.  We encourage reader involvement in contributing to this comprehensive online study.  We will be using Fink’s rule to classify a concussion/head injury.

As we all very well know, college athletics are a beloved element in our national sports culture- controversy aside.  With understanding this country-wide phenomena in the adoration of college football, specifically, we recognize this love, and sit back in our own respective comfort zones of viewing games with our friends and families cheering on our favorite programs and alma mater institutions.  College football is a significant part of our exposure to sports, but for the sake of specificity as it relates to the regards of our blog, college football has not necessarily been given much attention in consideration of the sports concussion crisis.  The purpose of this study is largely to bring forth such attention, and to generate critical questions of the standards in place as football as a whole, without secluding the focus to only that of the professional levels.  This is a hard task, mainly because of the abundance of programs at the Division-I level, but also due to the fact that the NCAA has no requirements placed on coaching staffs to report injuries sustained by players during play. Continue reading →

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Briggs: PA Senate Passes “Safety In Youth Sports Act”

1 Nov

This afternoon I received an email from Pennsylvania State Representative Tim Briggs notifying me of Senate Bill 200′s passing.  All that awaits is the signature of the governor, and from there, we will see progress in adjusting the culture of high school athletics to more properly address the concussion issue.  With this bill’s implementation, my home state of Pennsylvania will see a mechanism of change for the better, and hopefully no other Pennsylvania athlete will have to go through the physical and cognitive struggles that troubled me for nearly a year and a half.  Below is the email that I received:

Dear friends,

Just a quick note to let you know that the Senate voted just now to concur on SB200 and will be sending it to the Governor.  I wanted to thank everyone for helping Sen. Browne and I in our effort to get the Safety in Youth Sports Act passed.  This legislation has come a long way from when we first started working on it in the summer of 2009, and I am confident that because of your support and input that we were able to pass a very good bill. Continue reading →

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Comedy & Concussion

30 Oct
Click the link below; having issues embedding.

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Actions Speak Louder Than Words

20 Oct

John Gonoude has been writing for The Concussion Blog since January 2011.  He has been an advocate for concussion awareness and education since his medically advised ‘retirement’ from football his junior year of high school in 2008, and has been vocal on the issue of the necessity for education at all levels, especially noting the need for concussed athletes to have a voice in the culture of the game we play today.  Gonoude is currently a student at the University of Pittsburgh studying English Literature & Communications and plans to attend graduate school for Bioethics.  Follow him on Twitter: @jgonoude_TCB

Michael Vick has been a central figure in this year’s debate on the proper management of traumatic brain injury on the gridiron, and has inadvertently placed himself within a category of his own that stands indicative of the NFL’s “protocol.”  Such protocol that demands a player to be removed from the game at any suspicion of having sustained a concussion has dwindled toward a diminishing standard that can be abided by if a team feels that they can continue without that particular player.  For the Philadelphia Eagles, of course, they need Vick to be out there every down of every game.  They have too much money invested in him, after granting him with a one-hundred million dollar contract.  They even shipped their prospective ‘quarterback of the future’ for Vick, at the detriment of Kevin Kolb’s stay.  And let us not forget that the Eagles have dubbed themselves during the preseason as the “Dream Team,” only to find themselves in a 1-4 rut at the beginning of the season prior to last Sunday’s game against the Washington Redskins.

To retrace our steps a bit, I want to explain how frustrating this pre-Vick-ament has been to me.  In June of 2010, I was asked to assist in sponsoring and promoting Pennsylvania House Bill 2060, entitled “Protecting Our Student Athletes,” which was proposed by State Representative Tim Briggs.  Part of the support I was asked to give to this legislation included speaking at a press conference at Lincoln Financial Field with Tim Briggs, Tracy Yatsko, Dr. Drew Nagele of the Brain Injury Association of America, and the head athletic trainer of the Philadelphia Eagles, Rick Burkholder.  All pushed for support of this bill, and all believed that this was the right thing to do—the right message to send to our youth athletes and program directors.  And it was Rick Burkholder who gave a series of compelling statements on the necessity of such concussion management legislation. Continue reading →

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NCAA Reported-Concussion Study: Entering Week 6

4 Oct

For quite some time now we have been compiling data regarding reported concussions in Division-I NCAA college football, taking note of rates of reported injury as well as the implications that such injuries have placed upon the players themselves.  As before mentioned in a post covering the absence of requirement in NCAA teams reporting injuries, we understand that this study will not be that of an exact science, but it should and will point to several issues on this subject.  The questions that we may raise from this study include inquiry on the prevalence of concussions in this level of football, how the injury is distributed amongst different age groups, how teams may or may not find purpose in not reporting concussions alongside other common injuries, how repetitive injury may impact one’s playing career, and most importantly- should the NCAA be required to report injuries?

Right now, such questions are left to debate and statistical evaluation.  Reporting concussions is analogous to reporting weakness in this level of play, and much so applies to all aspects of contact sports today.  What we have gathered through numerous resources made available online (and for that matter, it has been quite a challenge to track down concussions in the NCAA via Internet) is more so a statement to be made to the general public, for media fatigue and a lack of specialization to compartmentalize this injury aside from others has yet to be available to us.  This study intends on bringing more focus on concussions in college football, and hopefully may lead to more research-based and awareness-provoking paths.

As we enter Week 6 of the 2011-2012 NCAA college football season, here are the numbers to what we are looking at in relation to the incidents of concussions in Division-I programs… Continue reading →

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Thinking Critically: 2011 NCAA Reported-Concussion Study

24 Sep

When we think about concussions in football, we typically associate the injury with instances reported in youth or high school programs, relating to second-impact syndrome and the lingering effects post-concussion syndrome can hold upon a student athlete, or we consider the implications of the term ‘concussion’ as it relates to professional football—the leading candidate of media exposure with regards to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, lawsuits, and the root behind penalties and fines.  These are hierarchical extremities of the American football family, where we are presented accounts of the effects of traumatic brain injury in our children, or in our idols.  One question remains however, and it is one that has rarely been touched upon by the general sports coverage media—what about college football?  Where does the issue stand in that level of play?

We have seen efforts from some college football programs in taking on the issue at hand, more specifically referencing the allegiance of the Ivy League, where in this past year they instituted a decrease in mandatory full-contact practices—an effort to limit player exposure to head trauma and the potential risks of repetitive head trauma, a decision that can link itself back to Chris Nowinski’s proposal of ‘hit counts.’  But we haven’t seen many efforts of collegiate teams to address this issue, though a handful of coaches have openly given positive feedback to the awareness that has been brought about lately.  College football dominates our weekly routines browsing television, as hundreds of teams square up to compete on the national stage, and upon that stage, it is inevitable to understand that concussions are occurring—it is inevitable to understand that many concussions aren’t being reported, either, by the coaching staffs to the media, or by the players to the coaches.

There is no reason to make it seem that the NCAA is infected by coaches withholding “Mike Leach” complexes, but there is reason to believe that there is a need for issue exposure at this level of the game. Continue reading →

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Span’s Struggles

7 Sep

Denard Span, center fielder for the Minnesota Twins, returned to the clubhouse earlier this week after spending some limited time at his home in Florida to cope with migraine-like symptoms stemming back to a concussion he received earlier in the baseball season.  Span has been hopeful in making several instances of return, only to be touched again by the building-up of symptoms that generated enough discomfort to sideline him again.  It has, too, been but a frustrating course of events for Span, much like that of his teammate Justin Morneau’s struggles with post-concussion syndrome during the 2010 regular season and 2011 spring training schedule.

His teammates have seen a difference in his play during his post-injury attempts at return, and his numbers would suggest just that.  Before his concussion in June, Span was batting a solid .294 at the lead-off spot with an on-base percentage of .361.  During his hopeful confirmation of recovery in August, Span went 2-35 (.057) in nine games played, only to be shutdown by prolonged symptoms as a result.  Fox Sports North recently published a compelling article on Span’s time dealing with post-concussion related symptoms, which includes interviews of both Span and his teammates.

Regarding his absence from the team when he was sent to his home in Flordia, Span touched upon one of the most common psychological reactions to the concussion injury, whereas the feelings of hopelessness and frustration would take over one’s mind to the point where their own worth at that point and place in time was self-questioned. Continue reading →

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Crosby to Speak Out Today

7 Sep

Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby is planned to speak to the media this afternoon, at 12:30PM ET, of his progress regarding his post-concussive condition which has put a halt to the current moment of his shining career.  Today will mark the first time since the previous NHL season where Crosby will publicly describe the extent of his injury, as he has clearly been heavily scrutinized and shamed due to the extensive time he has lost and failed to provide to the growing spectrum of hockey.  Whom many may consider the face of professional hockey, Crosby stands hopeful for a promising return but still remains unsure of his medical future.

Specialists in Georgia and Michigan have been monitoring the course of Crosby’s recovery for several months now, and until recently they found him to be at what was considered to be a 90% recovery, though headaches would gradually return only to provide that cloud of doubt around him and his closest friends and family.  The complications of the concussion injury are at most difficult and different in every case, and by matter of it happening to the Penguins’ prodigy, the hockey audience now presents itself with a real-time situation that clarifies the implications of mild traumatic brain injury, as well as displaying the vulnerability of the most valued players in the league. Continue reading →

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The Anatomy of the Illegal Hit

19 Aug

In last week’s preseason game between the Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh acted in a way that opened the doors yet again to the debate regarding illegal hits in the National Football League.  A conversation that was fueled by contrasting opinions sparked uproar in the football community, in relation to the professional establishments themselves as well as the game’s followers, revived itself at the sight of Suh’s withholding of Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton’s head in his chest, and tearing him to the ground as the quarterback’s helmet snapped off of his body.  Where most defensive players would say they witnessed a play that should be applauded for its fearsome nature, others may say that Suh’s pursuit and finishing of Dalton would be clear and deserving of punishment.  From my own perspective, I viewed an act that steps too close for comfort upon the line of an active play being before a defender’s eyes, or rather behind the defender’s ears.  No matter what perspective you take on the situation that occurred in the preseason match-up between the Lions and Bengals, it is clear the National Football League had to take action, and did so by fining Suh twenty-thousand dollars, which has since been appealed.

How much blame can one put on the aggressiveness displayed by Suh?  We all very well know that this is going to be, and quite so is, a matter of one being the product of the environment he was raised within and continues to dwell within.  Since the beginning of Suh’s football career, there is no doubt that such violence was encouraged and applauded by his peers and mentors, as the ones who catered to his very needs as a developing football star were themselves accustomed to such play.  Sure, this will be Suh’s third go-around with a fine delivered by the National Football League, but as a former football player myself, and as one who has been surrounded by football fanatics my entire life, I know that such athletes function upon short memories.  This style of play that Suh has displayed, more specifically in his man-handling of the likes of Andy Dalton, Jay Cutler, and Jake Delhomme in the past two years, will continue to be engraved within the defensive tackle’s arsenal.  Of course he’s outraged at the fine, but I do also believe that with everything you align yourself within, there will be restrictions, and in our adjusted sense of awareness in regards to the medical evidence of today, football needs to adapt to the day, rather than continue the promotion of the game of the past.  As much as we want to hold on to it, there will inevitably be increased rates of fines and suspensions. Continue reading →

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Lockout is over, but the real issue?

26 Jul

The country sits relieved, and welcomes the long-awaited announcement of the approved collective bargaining agreement that brought us back to the daily interactions of the National Football League.  We immediately reminded ourselves of the barbeques on Sunday afternoons to come, the beers cooled for the acquaintances to come over and watch our favorite teams compete, the ESPN updates ahead of us that may mark the thrilling transactions as beneficial or malignant to the functioning of our beloved allegiances, and last, but not least, we reminded ourselves of the tremendous, uplifting sensation that we as fans, and former players, get from watching professional athletes perform in a way that provides unique brilliance to our prized possession—football.

This lockout, in some ways, has clouded the issues that have been brought to the immediate forefront of the headlines regarding the National Football League—most specifically, the sports concussion issue.  During the lockout, we have seen the lives of Dave Duerson and John Mackey pass before us, both NFL greats haunted by the repercussions of repetitive head injury (where Duerson would be diagnosed postmortem with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, and Mackey, who had struggled with progressive dementia after his life in the NFL), and we have seen the collective action taken by 75 former NFL players to sue the league for withholding information on the implications of mild traumatic brain injury in their sport, which in turn allegedly allowed for the development of debilitative cognitive disorders and alterations in mental health.  We have seen these stories, and maybe we’re just starting to remember them as we look through this article, for to some, we have seen these issues live as one-day-acknowledgements, rather than signals for further action and encouragement for awareness and education regarding concussions. Continue reading →

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Pennsylvania Concussion Bill Is Moving

1 Jul

Pennsylvania State Representative Tim Briggs has been a clear advocate and vocal outlet for concussion education and awareness, dating back to the immediate commencement of his political career serving the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg, PA.  His efforts in putting forth such recognized information have been honorable, and he has gathered the support of many other such legislators to collectively put forth a piece of legislation that would be serve the interests and measures of protection of our student athletes.  What was originally put forth in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, known as House Bill (H.B.) 2060, has evolved into a processed bill that is just one step away from being put into action.

In 2010, I worked alongside Briggs, and others, in generating public support and advocacy of H.B. 2060, and did so by appearing in interviews on several news outlets in the Philadelphia area, as well as speaking at a press conference at Lincoln Financial Field– home of the Philadelphia Eagles.  At the time, the bill was in it’s youthful state, and was merely a proposed piece of legislation that had yet to reach levels of proper support and political molding.  But by seeing what sorts of reactions came about by working with Briggs, and Tracy Yatsko (amongst others), I saw the potential for this piece of legislation, and clearly remained a strong, and proud, supporter all throughout its existence in the House.

H.B. 2060 was passed by the House in September of 2010, and moved on to the Senate to become Senate Bill (S.B.) 200.  SB 200 has been largely applauded throughout the Commonwealth as well as across the nation, for it is considered to be one of the strongest, more detailed works of legislation we have seen regarding the treatment of sport-related head trauma in youth sports.  It has received the support and acknowledgement of highly acclaimed, world-renown neurologists such as Dr. Julian Bailes of West Virginia, and Dr. Micky Collins of UPMC (Pittsburgh).  The following will address the key points of SB 200: Continue reading →

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Lessons to Learn: Fighting for Football

26 May

“Like there haven’t been concussions in the last 100 years of sports.  Toughen up.  Quit looking for an excuse to sit on the sidelines.” [Comment on USA Today’s “Concussions now a hot issue as leagues toughen policies”]

In football, “pain” is considered “weakness leaving the body.”  It is a sensation that comes with pride and is the noted product of an individual own sacrifice of self to perform for the well being of the team he plays for.  The game itself revolves around the violence that defines football—a collection of organized aggression that is considered to be only accepting of the hard-nosed play of men.  If you can’t take a hit, then you might as well get off the field.  With violence comes expendability, where both characteristics of football blend to give it its beautiful but unforgiving persona.

So tell me what pain is.  Across the country, football players throughout all levels of play are taught the clear difference between being hurt and injured.  The aches, bruises, and cuts; this is when you’re hurt.  You can play through them, and one way or another, you or your coach will make damn sure that you play through them.  The muscle tears and broken bones, however, are clear to be defined as injuries, where slings, crutches, and casts are provided in relations of series of x-ray scans that prove that something is wrong with your body.  Here you are forgiven.  We’ll see you in a few weeks when you’re ready to go.  And as long as you stay true to your promise that you have dedicated yourself to this football program, then you will have your position on the depth chart back when you’ve shown the medical professionals that your body is in sufficient condition to play.

Now the real question is, what is a headache?  Sure, we’ve all played through headaches at one point or another throughout the course of our football careers, but did we ever stop to think about what it may be, or take the time to give ourselves a self-evaluation of our ability to continue playing at an efficient level?  Did we maybe forget being the huddle immediately as we placed our fingers on the line of scrimmage before the play began?  Did we fumble our words when calling an offensive or defensive play because we simply did not consolidate the routine signals or calls that our coaches have engrained in our minds since day one?  Did we ever come to forget the score of the game, or wonder how or why you were in on a certain play but not have the ability to recall making the tackle? Continue reading →

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The Downfall of Dave Duerson

6 May

(Project Brain Wave)  In 2007, at a Senate subcommittee hearing regarding the implications of long-term cognitive deficits as it relates to repetitive trauma to the head in football, Dave Duerson questioned the legitimacy of such a claim by dismissing any thoughts of relation to the game he played and loved to the neurological struggles of his peers.  Such an assertion at the time was of course denied by many involved with the game, and was largely considered an attack on the forefront of football’s integrity.  During his career, Duerson had at least ten concussions, and lost consciousness during some, according to his family.  And yet Duerson’s argument was founded upon the following claim:

“In regards to the issue of Alzheimer’s, my father’s 84, and as I mentioned earlier, Senator, spent 30 years at General Motors,” Duerson testified.  “He also has—he also has Alzheimer’s and brain damage but never played a professional sport.  So the challenge, you know, in terms of where the damage comes from, is a fair question.”

2007 was a time of inquiry for the national pride of football, as it found itself under tremendous scrutiny dating back to the finding of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in former Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Fame center, “Iron” Mike Webster.  Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a progressive degenerative disease of the brain that develops as a result of repetitive head trauma.  This trauma includes the symptomatic, and asymptomatic concussive blows to the head.  It is a disease that is associated with memory loss, impulse control problems, confusion, impaired judgment, aggression, depression, and eventual progressive dementia, most notably characterized by the build-up of tau protein in the brain—an abnormal protein that serves as a decisive key to the mental deterioration of the individual.

What is it that Duerson allowed to blockade his openness to such a proposal?  Without a doubt the pride instilled in the football athlete holds true and strong to the immense withholding of responsibility to the game itself.  Players will defend their sport, because they feel indebted to the numerous life lessons, experiences, and unforgettable memories that paint the legacies of players such as Duerson.  It is also a tremendous rejection of anything that may have been perceived to be a way of life to rather be a way of deferring one’s future to that of an accelerated cognitive decline.  It is fear.  It is knowing that the unknown could be developing without your awareness.  Duerson’s comments regarding the rejection of such a proposal of neurodegenerative implication as a result of playing football signify the feelings of the time.  After all, this was only found in just a few of his fellow football retirees.  This was something that was not widely accepted or acknowledged by those with medical degrees all throughout, and it certainly was something that the National Football League was not willing to endorse. Continue reading →

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Save Your Brain

2 May

We would like to introduce Save Your Brain, an organization headed by a Penn State University graduate amongst others who seek to take on the sports concussion crisis from a unique perspective.  Their approach is to synthesize entertainment with education, while encouraging the playing of contact sports in correlation with the emphasis of the need for concussion education.  The Concussion Blog’s “Project Brain Wave” will be working with Save Your Brain in the near future on some collaborative efforts in educative interviews and fundraising events.  Check them out!  You can also follow their mainstream & student-athlete targeted campaign on Facebook and Twitter.

With regard to America’s youth, entertainment and education have long been thought to be mutually exclusive entities. We at Save Your Brain seek to merge the two in a unique pursuit to revolutionize the instruction of tomorrow’s athlete.

Save Your Brain is an activist organization with the goal of both raising awareness and educating athletes on the concussion epidemic in youth sports. We are presenting a unique approach to teaching young athletes, making it fun to learn about brain injuries.  Concussions are a 21st century problem that requires a 21st century solution. Odds are if you try to tell a high school athlete that he’s gonna be a part of a statistic, he‘s going to tell you where to go (and it’s not a happy place). Nobody questions an athlete who takes appropriate time to heal a torn ACL or broken arm. We feel that it is just as important, if not more important, that this same mentality is applied to concussions. Our goal is to make it an inherent part of their athletic psyche to know that these are serious injuries that require proper attention and recovery. Continue reading →

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Manning Was “Joking”

1 May

Peyton Manning says he was joking about the comments he made on purposely tanking concussion tests.  Either way, whether we are thinking of Manning doing such a thing or not, the practice of underscoring to ensure play-time probability is a problem and a point of testing that needs to be addressed.  View the short article “clearing up” the situation Manning’s comments led to here.

Further Thoughts on Manning’s Statement…

27 Apr

This post is a collection of John Gonoude’s thoughts on the Peyton Manning statement in an interview with ESPN’s Rick Reilly concerning concussion testing in the NFL, and how Manning purposely ‘cheated the system’ to ensure a higher probability of return when and if injured. These are just ‘ramblings,’ but underline some key points that Manning’s statement may lead the conversation toward.

The news of Peyton Manning purposely tanking his concussion testing set me back a bit at first, but did not necessarily come to surprise me. What are we to take from this? I know that Rick Reilly’s interview with the Manning family was in an easy-going environment of discussion, but the fact that this what Manning’s response to the question—“How do you feel about all the new research about concussions that’s coming out?”–only came to make me wonder, is football taking this tool seriously? Is football taking this issue of sport-related head trauma seriously? Is Manning’s confession of undermining concussion testing one worth praising or criticizing?

Let’s face it, the guy is the face of the National Football League, and with that he comes to be an involuntary representative of professional, collegiate, and youth football. He has opened up a clear avenue of discussion for those trying to combat this issue, but also one that has brought forth even further criticism of this problem. The most frustrating thing about the fight to take on the concussion crisis is that everyone is ‘right,’ and that for every point there will always be a counterpoint. For every argument there will always be a counter-argument—so what is there to do?

Persist. I cannot thank or knock down Peyton Manning for this. I know one thing for sure, however, and that is the fact that our youth football players, and even contact sport athletes at large, will take note of this predicament and use it as a way to even further their own chances of dismissing this tool as a blockade to their performance. What are parents going to say about this? What are the individuals, and to my knowledge, these are athletic trainers conducting this testing, going to do to prevent this tanking from happening? When I was playing high school football, I know that all of my teammates thought that this testing was a joke. They found it useless, and a waste of their time. Sure, many programs use this just as one of many instruments or operations contributing to the recovery of an athlete. Many programs may rely on this almost solely, specifically at those without a present certified athletic trainer on site. Many programs go on about their activities without concussion testing.
Continue reading →

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Coping With Injury [Tracy Yatsko]

19 Apr

(Project Brain Wave)  Six years ago I suffered a concussion while playing basketball, and have been dealing with post-concussive symptoms ever since.  As all athletes who have sustained concussions know, as well as their families, it is a terrifying journey.  In 2005, when I first got hit and was in agonizing pain, many people said to me “there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.”  I hoped and I prayed that they were right.  As other outsiders preached the same thing throughout the second year of my exhausting adventure, my depression told them I was not in the mood to hear it—but maybe, just maybe, it’s almost over.  After the third year, if you were the individual to tell me that there was a “light at the end of the tunnel,” it was not a good thing for you… Let’s just say that it was in their favor that I was not a violent person, because I would have loved to shove that “light” where the sun doesn’t shine…

At age seventeen, I was taken out of high school and was told I would never be allowed to play basketball again.  At age eighteen, I was ripped out of college because my migraines took over my life, and at nineteen, I wanted to end my life.

I am now twenty-three-years old, and I make it my goal in life to raise awareness about the severity of concussions, as I want to help those who have suffered and who are now suffering from the lasting effects.  Six years ago I only had the support of my family, and I believe that there needs to be more than just that.  I had very few friends, but their lives went on and left me behind.  Other than my family, I had no one—no one to talk to, no one who could understand the pain I was in, and no one to help me. Continue reading →

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A Calling For Ease: Drew Fernandez’s Story

16 Apr

(Project Brain Wave)  High school football is one of the most exciting, defining, and proud markers of American culture, and is a level of play that to many, extends beyond being just a game.  The dreaded months of training camp, the long hours in the weight room and practice field, and the time spent studying playbooks to perfect a team’s system all contribute to the same goal—that being the unforgettable feeling of standing beneath the lights on a Friday night before your home crowd, set to take on the opponent you have prepared for.  This feeling that empowers our student athletes, that makes our parents proud and supportive, that makes our friends anxious to witness game day, is what the coaches and players live for.  High school football is defining, and is home to life lessons to be learned and experiences to cherish.  But for the Fernandez family, the high school football season of 2008 is one they will never forget.

Drew Fernandez, a young up and coming running back for his high school’s football program that was known for state championships in seven of the previous ten years, was productive both on the field, and off the field, executing plays on the field and performing well in his studies in the classroom.  His older brother had also been part of their high school’s championship legacy, and Drew was looking forward to contributing to such successes as well.  His first year in high school was in 2008, and it would be the first time he would have an opportunity to be a part of his hometown’s illustrious football program also.  According to his mother, Tracey, “football was everything to him.”

But such a mentality would soon be combated during one of his freshman football games, as Drew received the ball at running back during play, and then took hits from defenders in both the front and back of his head while he was being tackled.  Drew had sustained a concussion, and would be removed from play.  His mother told me of what events would then follow after her son took a blow to the head, resulting in his diagnosis.

“The trainer of the opposing team (the game was away) called me to tell me Drew suffered a concussion, and asked me if I wanted him to go back to school on the team bus or if he should call the paramedics,” said Tracey.  “I asked him to call the paramedics, and I met them at the ER.  The last thing Drew remembers from the day of his injury was riding on the bus to the game.  He has no recall of the trip to the ER via ambulance or anything thereafter until the next morning when he woke up at home.” Continue reading →

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